
Book sV\ \7^. 



Copyright 1^°. 



COFYRrCHT DEPOSrr 







FRONTISPIECE, 



Digitized by the Internet Arciiive 
in 2010 witii funding from 
Tine Library of Congress 



http://www.archive.org/details/glimpsesofpanamaOOmcca 



Glimpses of Panama 



AJS^D OF 



THE CANAL 



MARY L. Mccarty 



¥ 



KANSAS CITY, MO. 

Tiernan-Dart Printing Company 

1913 






COPYRIGHT 1913 



MARY L. Mccarty 



/3 ^f/'^x(^ 



©CLA347449 



V 



Zo flDp Si0ter 




CKNOWLEDGMENT of courtesies 
extended is made to officials of 
the Panama Railroad and Steamship Line, 
and particularly to Mr. E. A. Drake, Vice 
President, Mr. J. A. Smith, General Super- 
intendent, Mr. C. C. Van Riper, Passen- 
ger Agent, Mr. A. K. Stone, Master of 
Transportation, and Captain Sukeforth, of 
the S. S. Ancon ; also to Mr. John Barret, 
^^ashington, D.C., and Mr. I. L. Maduro, 
Jr., Panama. 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



Page 

Map of the Panama Canal Frontispiece 

Tivoli Hotel, Anoon, Canal Zone 19 

Panamanian Transportation 22 

Royal Palms, The Savannas, Panama. . . 40 

Type of Native Hut 43 

Rnins of Cathedral Tower, Old Panama. . 46 

Sight-seeing Train . . . . 55 

Pedro Miguel Locks 58 

Aneon Hospital, with Royal Palms 71 

Bachelor Officers' Quarters, 

Ancon Hospital 72 

Famous Flat Arch 74 

Narrow Street, Panama 76 

National Theatre, Panama 78 

Panama Government Building 80 

Front Street, Colon 86 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS— Continued 



Page 

Sanitarium, Taboga Island 89 

Columbus Monument, Cristobal 91 

Beach at Cristobal 94 

Gatun Upper Locks 100 

Profile of the Panama Canal 106 

Cocoanut Trees, Panama Ill 

Empire, Canal Zone 128 

Y. M. C. A. Building 132 

Looking North Through Culebra Cut . . 139 

Inland Light House 141 

Culebra Cut, Cross Section 144 

Native Village 153 

Governor's Residence, Ancon 164 

Old Cathedra], Panama 174 

Municipal Building, Panama 176 



Glimpses of Panama 



I. 



Dim, ghostly mountain shapes on 
the sky, directly ahead, gave us our 
first glimpse of the Isthmian Land. 
The seven days' voyage down from 
New York, with its blue skies and 
smooth seas and lazy life on deck, had 
been pleasant enough, and we had 
even lamented that it was not to be 
longer; but now, on the instant, that 
feeling took wings and we were full 
of eagerness to reach the strange and 
wonderful things we had come so far 
to see. 

It was in the forenoon that we be- 
held that misty picture on the sky. 



9 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

By afternoon those cloud-like forms 
had taken on a look of stern and rocky 
reality — being the highlands of Porto 
Bello — and were passed on our left as 
we approached the harbor of Colon, 
twenty miles further on. 

The town of Colon did not look im- 
pressive to our interested gaze, being 
low and small and with nowhere any 
appearance of solid bulk. In fact, we 
wondered if that was the town or only 
an introductory bit of it, and if the 
real thing was not around on the 
other side of a hill, somewhere. But 
it looked strange and foreign, and 
with this satisfactory thought we 
turned our attention to the big stone 
breakwater and the fine, new docks 
now under construction, and finally 
to the wharf, where waiting friends 



10 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

and relatives were shouting and wav- 
ing handkerchiefs, and countless va- 
rieties of negroes were standing ready 
to unload the ship. 

Almost at once we distinguished 
Col. Goethals' tall figure, and recog- 
nized him from the pictures we had 
seen of him in papers and magazines. 
The young man at his side we knew 
must be his son, and as soon as the 
gang-plank was down they came on 
board to greet Mrs. Goethals, who 
had been our fellow-passenger and 
was waiting for them inside. We 
were delighted to have so early a 
glimpse of the Lord of the Canal 
Zone, whose looks we liked and whose 
acquaintance we hoped to make later 
on. 

Reaching the dock, we encountered 



11 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

first the customs ordeal, through 
which we were expedited by the kind- 
ness of one of the Panama Railroad 
officials ; and then, being free so early 
in the game, instead of waiting for the 
special train which was standing on 
the dock, ready to carry the ship's 
passengers across the Isthmus when 
they should be released, we acted on 
the advice of the same kind official 
and drove over to the railroad station 
in time for the regular four-thirty-five 
train. This would give us more day- 
light for our trip and get us into the 
City of Panama at a reasonable dinner 
hour, considerably ahead of the spe- 
cial. 

We hoped to see something of the 
strange land and the Canal work be- 
fore it grew dark, and were gratified 



12 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

almost imrhediately, for the train 
plunges at once into the wild, — so dif- 
ferent from our northern woods — and 
at Gatun, seven miles from Colon, we 
caught sight of a vast stretch of con- 
crete work which we knew was the 
locks; while along a road which 
wound from behind a hill we saw a 
stream of laborers approaching, evi- 
dently Canal workmen just through 
with their day's work. To us they did 
not seem like common toilers, for 
were they not working on the "big 
job," and just a little bit glorified 
thereby! In fact, they were uncom- 
mon looking on account of the variety 
of nationalities presented — Ameri- 
cans, Spaniards, Chinese, Japanese, 
Hindoos and all the shades and varie- 
ties of negroes that are seen in that 



13 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

land. We soon grew used to this 
motley look of crowds on the Isthmus, 
but on this first occasion it caught 
our attention quite forcibly. 

Then we went around and across 
twenty-three miles of half-dead, al- 
ready partly inundated country which 
is to be the bed of Gatun Lake, the 
great artificial body of water pro- 
duced by the building of the dam at 
Gatun, into which ships will be lifted 
by the Gatun locks, and across which 
they will proceed to the cut through 
the mountains. In the dimming light, 
with its deep-water stretches, its 
swamps filled with dying trees, its 
floating islands and disappearing 
tree-tops and, above all, the strange 
character of the vegetation, of which 
we were becoming increasingly con- 



14 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

scious, it had a melancholy, uncanny 
aspect which deepened as we ap- 
proached the shadows of the moun- 
tains. 

At Bas Obispo begins the great 
Culebra Cut, and from there on we 
began to have fascinating glimpses 
of the "big ditch" from time to timiC, 
every glimpse showing it deeper and 
deeper as we neared the continental 
divide at Culebra. By the time we 
had passed this point darkness had 
fallen and we leaned back, thinking 
the show was over; but suddenly we 
found ourselves approaching a huge 
trestle, brightly illumined by some 
light from below, and realized all at 
once that we were about to cross the 
Canal. In another instant we were 
slowly moving out into mid-air and 



15 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

there, in a blaze of light from innum- 
erable big fires, burning at regular 
intervals up and down the Cut, as far 
as we could see, was all the work of 
excavation going on below us. The 
fires were not common bonfires, but 
symmetrical piles of ties built up in 
great cubes, producing a most beau- 
tiful effect, and in the light of their 
leaping flames men and machinery 
and work trains stood out with start- 
ling distinctness; w^hile at one end 
of the abyss, looming up in the red 
and murky distance, the great white 
mass of one of the locks gave a final 
and mysterious touch to a scene 
which suggested an opening into 
some lower world. We gazed fasci- 
natedly at the brilliant picture, and as 
it passed from view we sighed with 



16 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

satisfaction and felt sure that what 
we had come to see was going to be 
well worth seeing. 

The Panama Railroad — on which 
we were traveling — is not a new road, 
but was built in the early fifties by a 
group of American railroad men, and 
acquired by the United States in 1904. 
Being in the way of the Canal, it has 
gradually been moved, a part at a 
time, and is now entirely relocated, 
running from Colon to Panama 
wholly on the east side of the Canal. 
A section of the old road is still used 
for convenience, but will be removed 
when the Canal is done, and it is this 
section which crosses the Cut and, 
incidentally, adds interest to the little 
journey across the Isthmus. 

Originally it was intended to carry 



17 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

the railroad through the Cut on a 
bench ten feet above the water, but 
the slides made that impracticable. 
It is an excellent road, smooth and 
comfortable, with everything in the 
way of modern equipment, as we re- 
alized at intervals when we could get 
our minds off the scene outside. Our 
fellow-passengers were American and 
Spanish, with a sprinkling of well- 
dressed Chinese and Japanese. At 
one station we were delighted to see 
a lot of our own khaki-clad soldiers, 
and presently a group of officers in 
their dress uniforms of white linen 
with gold buttons and epaulets, ac- 
companied by several attractive 
young women, got into our car and 
quite brightened up the scene. The 
ladies looked very up-to-date and the 



18 




4~ 

H 
O 

o 
> 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

party was evidently on pleasure bent. 

When we reached Panama, about 
seven o'clock, black darkness en- 
veloped the town and we realized 
nothing but a confusion of people and 
carriages. But, in a few minutes, 
having secured one of the vehicles 
and driven up a long, dark hill, we 
found ourselves blinking in the lobby 
of the Tivoli, the big Government ho- 
tel, which we meant to make our head- 
quarters during our stay on the Isth- 
mus. Here arrived also the army 
group, and we learned that they had 
come into Panama to attend the inau- 
guration ball of the new president of 
the Republic of Panama, which was to 
take place somewhere down in the 
city that evening. 

The room on the second floor in the 



20 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

right wing to which we were pres- 
ently conducted was bare looking, 
according to northern standards, but 
had all the essentials, including a big 
private bathroom, and opened by 
door and window on a wide screened 
porch which looked across the green 
space in front of the hotel to the op- 
posite wing. Our only objection to 
it was its distance from everything, 
the right-angled passage-way leading 
to it being the most interminable 
thing we had ever encountered. There 
were no elevators nearer than the 
center of the building and even those 
were out of commission on account 
of alterations going on in the hotel. 
Our quarters were said to be part of 
the suite occupied by President Taft 
the last time he was there, and we 



21 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

tried to remember whether the news- 
papers, at the time of his return to 
Washington, had anything to say of a 
noticeable reduction in his weight. 
We felt sure we should become living 
skeletons if we traversed that passage 
daily for a week or two; but seeing 
the Canal, we felt, was worth a good 
many pounds of flesh and we would 
yield them cheerfully. 

After a good dinner in the long din- 
ing-room — R. being quite delighted 
with the roast beef — we felt an eager 
desire to see something more at once; 
so, without having to wait for me to 
get hat or wrap, because we were in 
the tropics, we walked out to the top 
of the broad flight of steps at the hotel 
entrance, summoned one of the line 
of carriages which we had observed 



23 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

waiting there and commanded that 
we be driven about the city. Both in 
Colon and Panama these light car- 
riages, drawn usually by one horse, 
are used by everybody and almost 
take the place of street cars, — of 
which, as yet, there is none, though 
there is a line building — carrying you 
anywhere within the city limits for 
ten cents apiece and on long trips for 
a dollar an hour for two people. This 
we found very pleasant and I should 
really have been thankful for the ab- 
sence of street cars except for the fact 
that at first, in my ignorance, I was 
worried about the horses. Such 
undersized, skinny little beasts I 
never saw before, and I was sure that 
they were half starved and ready to 
drop in their tracks from exhaustion. 



24 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

As a member of the Humane Society 
in my home town, I felt I could not 
consistently ride behind one of those 
abused looking animals and began to 
dream of turning missionary in their 
behalf to those benighted people. 
But, bless you! I found on investiga- 
tion that those little Panamanian 
horses are as tough and strong as pos- 
sible and are only small and thin be- 
cause it is their nature so to be. Our 
big horses do not thrive down there, 
but those little things belong to the 
country and, after you understand the 
situation, are quite attractive in their 
combination of bone and energy. 

It was Saturday night, that first 
night in Panama, and the crowd in 
the streets was large and made up, 
apparently, of all the nations of the 



25 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

earth, the most picturesque touch be- 
ing furnished by the turbaned Hin- 
doos, stately, solemn and aloof, who 
presented no appearance whatever of 
being out for a good time. Drinking 
and gambling were much in evidence, 
and lottery tickets were for sale every- 
where. The lotteries are protected 
by the government and many tickets 
are sold by old women, who sit in 
chairs on the sidewalks or in door- 
ways all day long and all night, too, 
so far as we observed, with strings of 
lottery tickets in their laps to tempt 
the passer-by. We bought one for a 
souvenir, but as it was all in Spanish 
and we have never had it translated, 
if we have drawn the $15,000 capital 
prize, that interesting fact is yet un- 
known to us. 



26 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

At ten o'clock we returned to the 
hotel, feeling that we had already 
learned a good deal of the new coun- 
try since our landing at Colon that 
afternoon. So many new sights and 
impressions had filled the intervening 
hours that three o'clock seemed a long 
way back. We talked over what we 
had seen and what we expected to see, 
not only on the Isthmus but on the 
long ocean voyage up the Pacific coast 
to San Francisco, which was to be 
part of our homeward way; and de- 
cided for the hundredth time that 
nothing more restful and delightful 
than this plan could be devised. One 
thing only disturbed our joy of antici- 
pation and that was the fact that one 
or two persons on the "Ancon," 
going down, had warned us that the 



27 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

west-coast boats were by no means 
first-class. Although this did not 
sound very alarming, we decided to 
seize every opportunity to inform our- 
selves on the subject and, especially, 
to try to meet some one who had 
actually made the trip. 

And thus ended our first day. 



28 



II. 



We were awakened early, our first 
morning in Panama, by the variegated 
noises of the nearby railroad. As we 
were eager to view our surroundings, 
we did not mind the disturbance that 
time, though afterwards it got to be 
a nuisance. Rather to our disappoint- 
ment, the outlook from our quarters 
embraced only a few houses and some 
green hills; so, as soon as possible, 
we stepped out on our porch and 
started to find the sun and the town 
and the ocean and anything else there 
might be to see. As the screened 
porches encircle the hotel at every 



29 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

story, there was no bar to our prog- 
ress, and on turning a corner we be- 
held the objects of our search. There 
below us was a good bit of the town, 
and beyond the town was the ocean, 
and above the ocean was the sun, just 
risen. At that instant began a strug- 
gle with the cardinal points which 
ended only with our departure from 
the country. In the first place, in 
order to reach the western coast of 
the Isthmus we had come east — or 
southeast, anyhow — as any one can 
see by looking at the map. Then, as 
just mentioned, there was the re- 
splendent orb of day, "scarce from 
sea withdrawn," and that sea the Pa- 
cific Ocean, which logically should re- 
ceive said orb at the conclusion of its 
day's career. These things are the 



30 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

result, of course, of the shape of the 
Isthmus and the eccentricities of the 
coast line, but the attendant confusion 
of mind is not so easily removed as the 
cause is explained. 

The town, too, is extremely irregu- 
lar. Our only hope of telling the di- 
rections was by this same sun, and it 
always seemed to be in the wrong 
place. Besides, we were there in the 
rainy season and could not always see 
the sun. Of course we did not have 
to know the cardinal points, but, on 
account of its difficulty, it became a 
sort of obsession with us-^we were 
crazy to know how things faced and 
which way the streets ran, and 
adopted as a sort of game the habit 
of asking each other suddenly which 
was north and where was south and 



31 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

similar conundrums. To this minute 
we are not absolutely certain how the 
Tivoli Hotel stands, but cherish a 
timid impression that it has a north- 
east front. 

To go back to that first morning — 
when we went to breakfast I began 
with a banana, expecting, of course, 
there on its native heath, where I had 
already seen whole plantations of 
them, to find it so superior that I 
should feel as if I had never really 
eaten one before; but as it tasted ex- 
actly as if it had come from my gro- 
cery at home and I was not very fond 
of bananas, anyway, I ate no more 
of them, nor very much of any other 
tropical fruit. The grape-fruit are not 
so good as those we get in the North, 
nor are the oranges. The latter are 



32 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

small and occasionally we enjoyed 
eating them, served Cuban fashion, 
impaled on a fork. 

One product of the country found 
favor with us and that was the alli- 
gator pears. It was so delightful to 
be able to eat them every day, unat- 
tended by the sense of impending 
bankruptcy which is the invariable 
accompaniment of their consumption 
in the North. Some contrary people 
at our table, however, said they did 
not enjoy them at all when they were 
cheap. In addition to the native 
fruits, all the fruit stores on the Isth- 
mus keep plenty of fine apples, which 
make a beautiful display and find 
favor with the tourists. 

It was during that first breakfast 
that we became acquainted with the 



33 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

money of the country. R. had asked 
the waiter to get a bill changed for 
him and had received, in return, such 
an astonishing amount of silver that 
he was about to give back a handful 
or two, thinking it a mistake, but dis- 
covered in time that the coins were 
Panamanian, worth only half the 
same sized pieces in United States 
currency. As the two kinds of money 
are used indiscriminately, we had to 
be on the lookout after that for the 
difference. 

No sooner was the money problem 
solved than we ran up against the 
postage proposition. During our 
seven days on the ocean I had written, 
sealed and stamped several letters, 
which I mailed on landing. After 
breakfast that first morning, I learned 



34 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

that I should have used Panamanian 
stamps and that the recipients of my 
first epistles would all have to pay for 
the privilege of hearing of our safe 
arrival. However, Browning says, 
"What joy is better than the news of 
friends?" and I hoped my correspond- 
ents would agree with him. 

The forenoon hours of that day — 
Sunday — we were obliged to devote 
to unpacking and arranging our be- 
longings. In the afternoon we in- 
tended to begin our acquaintance with 
the country round about by driving to 
the ruins of old Panama, six miles 
up the coast. But, as before men- 
tioned, the rainy season was on and 
towards noon the heavens fell. Real- 
ly, the water did not come down in 
drops but in a solid body, and, in our 



35 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

inexperience, we supposed the day 
was over, so far as going out was con- 
cerned. But not at all. After a while 
the rain stopped as suddenly as it had 
begun and, although clouds remained, 
no further downpour seemed immi- 
nent; so we concluded to venture 
forth. It seemed prudent, however, 
to carry umbrellas and light raincoats, 
and this was the beginning of our 
slavery to these indispensable articles ; 
for, being warned by those who knew, 
never, no matter how blue the sky or 
golden the sunlight, did we sally forth 
without them. Not that it rained 
every time we went out, but there was 
always the probability ; and if it didn't 
rain, the sun would be likely to shine 
and the umbrella would do for a para- 
sol. Of our ten days in the Canal 



36 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

Zone, all but two were more or less 
rainy and even then it rained during 
the intervening night. The only 
heavy rain, though, was on that first 
Sunday, the one I am now telling 
about. 

Fully equipped and ready for every 
fate, therefore, we stepped boldly 
forth to the top of the hotel steps and 
summoned a carriage in the usual 
manner, which was generally a wave 
of the hand, though sometimes simply 
stepping forth was enough. I never 
minded waiting a minute or two, 
though, for the space in front of the 
hotel was so pretty, with its royal 
Poinciana trees and the bushes of 
flaming scarlet hibiscus bordering the 
drive-way, that it was a pleasure to 
stand and look. We had decided on a 



37 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

carriage instead of an automobile be- 
cause we had been told that the drive 
to old Panama ran through a pretty 
country and we wanted to go slowly 
enough to see things on the way. 
Fate was kind to us that day in send- 
ing us driver "No. 18" in response to 
our summons; for thereby we were 
supplied with a most interesting and 
well-informed guide, who added much 
to our enjoyment of the expedition. 
He was a Jamaican negro who spoke 
very correct English and had traveled 
considerably, having at one time lived 
as far north as Boston. He knew 
every bird, flower, bush and tree, was 
perfectly familiar with all the details 
of the Canal work, could discuss like a 
statesman the past and present affairs 
of Panama, both city and republic. 



38 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

could correct us on points of history 
and was, withal, the embodiment of 
good nature and politeness. 

Almost at once I noticed that his 
horse was rather emaciated and, 
having not yet acquired all the infor- 
mation about Panamanian horses 
that I have herein set down, I could 
not help asking him if it was good 
for a long drive. He smiled genially 
and replied that he had two horses 
which he used alternately and that 
this one was quite fresh. 

We soon struck the fine, hard road 
which the Government has recently 
built from Panama to the ruins of the 
old city with some of the money it 
got from the United States. It passes 
through a region called "The Savan- 
nas," where the wealthy Panamanians 



39 




ROYAL. PALMS, THE SAVANNAS, PANAMA. 
Courtesy of I.L. Madura, Jr., Panama. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

have their country homes. Some of 
the houses are attractive, though not 
at all sumptuous, and the open, rolling 
country is charming, with its luxuri- 
ant vegetation, so much of it new to 
us, the royal palms adding always a 
stately touch to the landscape. Our 
agreeable driver pointed out bananas, 
oranges, lemons, grape-fruit, cocoa- 
nuts, pineapples, orchids, and many 
other unfamiliar things as we drove 
along, stopping occasionally to give 
us a better view of something or to 
gather a strange flower for me from 
the roadside. The animal life we saw 
was familiar enough. In the fields 
around the big houses were horses 
and cattle, and around the poor places 
near the road were always chickens 
and ducks and geese and turkeys and 



41 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

sometimes pigs. We did see, how- 
ever, some beautiful strange birds. 

Up on the hillsides were many of 
the native huts, with their thatched 
roofs, looking wild and primitive. 
Alec — that was our driver's name — 
told us that some of the people sleep 
■close up under those roofs, climbing 
up by means of ladders, and that the 
custom, quite unnecessary now, has 
been handed down from the time 
when wild beasts broke into the 
houses at night and the people were 
obliged to put themselves out of their 
reach. 

Thus, surrounded by interesting 
sights and engaged in pleasant con- 
verse, we jogged along and looked 
with pitying eye at the occasional 
motor parties that overtook or passed 



42 




TYPE OF NATIVE HUT ALONG THE LINE OF THE 
PANAMA RAILROAD. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

US, at a speed that precluded all the 
pleasures we were enjoying. 

After a while we turned towards 
the shore — from which we had not 
been far at any time — and in a few 
minutes had reached our goal. There, 
before us, was all that remains of what 
was, up to the time of its destruction, 
the richest and most important city 
of the new world. Founded in 1518, 
it reached its highest estate in the 
days of the Peruvian mines, when a 
stream of wealth was flowing continu- 
ally across the Isthmus and the city 
had become a great commercial cen- 
ter. In 1671 it was taken, looted and 
burned by Henry Morgan, the bucca- 
neer, and his formidable band. We 
had read the history of Morgan's raid 
and now, on the very spot, gazing at 



44 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

the hill overlooking the city, where 
he first appeared, and the old Spanish 
bridge across the ravine at its foot, 
which he must have crossed, we were 
quite thrilled as we talked it over, 
our well-informed guide supplying all 
details which we could not remember. 

The most picturesque bit among the 
ruins is a stately, vine-clad tower — • 
part of one of the churches — which 
stands quite close to the shore, look- 
ing out over the broad Pacific. Be- 
sides this, there remain the outer walls 
of other churches and public build- 
ings, many of them with ancient and 
lofty trees growing inside. 

History says that, at the time of 
the sacking of the city, much of its 
wealth, in the form of coin and jewels, 
was thrown into wells and buried in 



45 





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RUINS OP CATHEDRAL TOWER AT OLD PANAMA, 
DESTROYED BY MORGAN IN 1671. 
Courtesy of Pan American Union. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

cellars. It is supposed that some of it 
still remains in its hiding places, and 
since we were there we have read in 
the papers that the Panamanian gov- 
ernment is about to undertake a sys- 
tematic excavation of the old city, 
with a view to the recovery of this 
treasure. 

After gazing our fill at everything 
in the neighborhood of the tower, we 
struck into the woods to look at other 
ruins, some of which were so over- 
grown with vines and shrubbery as to 
be almost invisible at a little distance. 
There was no ivy, though, and I 
learned from our guide that it will 
not grow on the Isthmus. The woods 
were very, very wet, but Alec carried 
a board on his shoulder which he laid 
across every bad place that was roo 



47 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

wide for me to jump. This was con- 
siderate in him and enabled me to get 
along; but the shoes I wore never 
did get dry till they were back in the 
United States. 

From the woods we took a short 
cut back to the shore and returned to 
the carriage by way of the shell- 
strewn beach. We walked along silent- 
1}% the intense quiet, the atmosphere 
of other days, which surroimded us 
giving us a feeling of complete detach- 
ment from the every-day world. 
Night was approaching and already 
the thick, green woods from which we 
had emerged looked dark and brood- 
ing. The beautiful, great ocean 
through which silver-laden ships once 
plowed their way to the rich and pros- 
perous city whose crumbling rem- 



48 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

nants lay round about us, showed 
scarcely a ripple. 

We were loath to leave the lovely 
scene, especially the lonely tower 
which has stood there like a sentinel 
such a long, long time. In the fading 
light it looked awesome and mysteri- 
ous and I wondered if the spirits of 
those long-dead people of old Panama 
never came back to the place in which 
so many of them took refuge on that 
dreadful day of the city's destruction. 

I was glad to think of the long rest 
our steed had had under a tree near 
the shore, and noticed with satisfac- 
tion the briskness with which he start- 
ed off homeward. The drive back was 
an agreeable rest and was enlivened 
by a discussion on Panamanian poli- 
tics with our versatile driver. Reach- 



49 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

ing the outskirts of the city — which 
was founded two years after the de- 
struction of its predecessor — we 
passed through a heterogeneous 
crowd of men who showed traces of 
recent excitement, and were told that 
it was "the cock-fight crowd" and that 
cock-fighting was the national pas- 
time, the favorite Sunday amusement. 

This was the final piece of informa- 
tion gained from our encyclopedic 
Jamaican, then or ever, for, although 
we saw him several times afterward, 
driving other people about, never 
again was he at the head of the wait- 
ing line when we wanted a carriage. 

There was just one thing he did 
not seem to know and that was about 
the boats on the west coast. Perhaps, 
from some hidden motive of policy. 



50 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

he preferred to be non-committal. At 
any rate, we learned nothing from him 
on that point. 

On Sunday night there is always a 
band concert on the Cathedral Plaza 
and we had intended going that even- 
ing, but as the weather was again 
threatening and we expected to be 
there another Sunday, we decided to 
remain safe and dry at the Tivoli, 
write some letters, talk over what we 
had seen that day and settle our plans 
for the week. 

On the next day, Monday, we were 
to begin to see the Canal work. The 
Panama Railroad at that time was 
running sight-seeing trains on Mon- 
days, Thursdays and Saturdays, visit- 
ing each division of the work twice 
during the week, once in the morning 



51 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

and once in the afternoon. As we 
were in no hurry and hated to get up 
early, this seemed to us a very agree- 
able arrangement and we determined 
to confine ourselves to the afternoon 
trips. The one scheduled for Monday 
afternoon embraced the Pedro Miguel 
lock and the Miraflores locks and dam 
— the Pacific division of the Canal 
work. With this pleasure in prospect 
for the morrow our second day drew 
to its close. 



52 



III. 

When we went to breakfast on 
Monday morning at eight o'clock, we 
found the first floor no longer the 
quiet and orderly place it had hitherto 
seemed. The alterations going on in 
the hotel embraced the ball-room and 
the dining-room, both of which were 
being enlarged towards the front and, 
of course, when we descended the 
workmen were in full swing. We ate 
our morning meal to the sound of their 
hammers and saws, and gave thanks 
when we reflected that we should be 
far away at lunch-time and that they 
would always be gone at dinner-time. 



53 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

Although we were to take only the 
afternoon trip over the Pacific divi- 
sion, we were obliged to leave Pana- 
ma at ten-twenty in the forenoon, in 
order to catch the sight-seeing train 
at Culebra, where it would stop after 
its morning trip to allow the passen- 
gers to see the lock models and have 
luncheon. So it really was going to 
take about all day, and after breakfast 
we had only time to look over the pa- 
pers, write some post cards and chat 
a little in the lobby before starting to 
the station. 

On alighting from the train at Cule- 
bra we found an ambulance drawn by 
mules ready to take us up to the Ad- 
ministration Building on top of the 
hill, and on reaching the entrance 
of the building we were directed to 



54 




TYPICAL EXCURSION SIGHT-SEEING TRAIN OF THE 

PANAMA RAILROAD. 
Courtesy of Pan American Union. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

the lecture-room by an agreeable and 
courteous young gentleman who had 
come up the hill with us. Being inter- 
ested in the subject of locks and de- 
sirous of understanding thoroughly 
the working of the Canal, we found 
the lecture and the models extremely 
profitable, and went down the hill 
afterwards considerably enlightened 
— as we hoped, also, was the man who, 
on the way up, had remarked that he 
wouldn't know a lock if he met it in 
the road. What we went down the 
hillforwasto get some lunch, and this 
we found at the Commission dining- 
room, where for fifty cents apiece we 
were served with a very excellent 
meal, the quality being uniformly 
good and the quantity about three 
times as much as we could eat. No- 



56 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

where else in the Canal Zone did we 
find so good a Commission dining- 
room as this one at Culebra. 

Thus fortified, both mentally and 
physically, with lecture and luncheon, 
we blithely mounted the sight-seeing 
car — an open car with seats running 
across and with a floor which vv^as 
high at the back and sloped down to 
the level of the lecturer in front — im- 
patient to begin to see the "big job." 
However, "there is always some draw- 
back," and now, although up to this 
point the day had been perfect, an un- 
invited little shower suddenly ob- 
truded itself and even tried to get into 
the car, thus obliging the porter to 
lower the canvas curtains in order to 
keep us dry. Shutting out the rain 
meant shutting out the view, too, and 



57 




32 

O -j- 
OQ 






GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

this was afflicting; but it proved to 
be necessary for only occasional short 
periods, during which the lecturer 
told us about the things we were 
about to see and answered any ques- 
tions we wanted to ask in a ver}/^ pleas- 
ant and comprehensive manner. 

Presently we arrived at Pedro 
Miguel — in local parlance, Peter Me- 
gill — -where we were switched to the 
construction tracks and taken out 
close to the lock work. There we got 
out and at last found ourselves face to 
face with one of the concrete mon- 
sters. Here words fail me. "Stu- 
pendous" seems to be the favorite ad- 
jective with most people and I can't 
think of a better, but, really, a brand- 
new one should be coined. Those 
locks look like the work of giants and 



59 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

as if they would stand forever, "Eter- 
nal as the hills," I said to myself, but 
just then a man of the party re- 
marked, "Well, I suppose some thou- 
sands of years hence archaeologists 
will be digging around here and will 
come across the remains of these locks 
and wonder what on earth they were, 
anyhow." 

One pair of gates were done and 
closed and as they are seven feet thick 
and equipped with a hand-rail along 
the top for the use of the public, we 
walked across them — an umbrella-ed 
procession — to the center wall where 
we could see both sides and get a bet- 
ter idea of the thousand feet of length 
and the two hundred and twenty feet 
of breadth of the double chamber. All 
the locks are double in order that ves- 



60 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

sels can go in opposite directions at 
the same time; also, if one is out of 
commission, the other can be used. 
Pedro Miguel lock is single in that it 
will raise and lower ships only one 
step, of thirty feet. It is the link be- 
tween the Cut and Miraflores Lake, a 
small artificial body of water with an 
area of two square miles, formed by 
impounding the waters of three small 
rivers by means of the Miraflores 
locks and dam. 

As we stood on the walls we 
thought of all that had been told us 
of their construction, and imagined 
the water rushing in for the first time, 
through the huge tunnels, eighteen 
feet in diameter, passing lengthwise 
of the lock through the center and 
side walls, then through lateral tun- 



61 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

nels which branch out from the first 
ones at right angles and run under the 
lock floors, then through openings in 
the lock floor into the lock chamber. 
And we pictured to ourselves a great 
ship coming in, attended by four elec- 
tric locomotives operating on the 
walls, two in front towing, one at each 
side, and two behind, one at each side, 
to stop her when she gets into proper 
position. 

By the time we had gone over all 
this in our minds we were summoned 
to climb back into the car and go on, 
across the bed of the future Miraflores 
Lake, to the Miraflores locks. These 
are two in flight and will raise and 
lower vessels fifty-five feet, in two 
steps, between the lake and the sea- 
level end of the Canal, which connects 



62 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

with the Pacific Ocean eight miles 
away. The work here was jtist the 
same as at Pedro Miguel, only there 
was twice as much of it, and we were 
still more deepl}^ impressed with the 
immensity of the task which our coun- 
try is accomplishing. 

From here we went on to Balboa, 
where the Canal enters the ocean, and 
saw the great dredges at work in the 
channel and the long, stone break- 
water now under construction. The 
latter is four miles long, extending 
from the mainland to Naos, one of 
the group of three beautiful islands 
which the United States is fortifying 
to guard the entrance of the Canal. 
These islands are exceedingly rocky 
and picturesque, their steep sides ris- 
ing abruptly from the water to a great 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

height, relieved here and there by 
trees and shrubs, whose varying 
greens contrast exquisitely w^ith the 
dark rock. The three islets seem to 
have been dropped by nature exactly 
into the right position to fulfil their 
office of protecting the Canal ter- 
minus. 

Drills and cranes and steam-shovels 
and dirt-trains and concrete mixers 
and track-lifters had been thrown in 
to make good the measure of our 
afternoon's entertainment, and by this 
time we began to feel the need of a 
rest for our minds ; so the return to 
Panama between five and six and the 
sight of the big Tivoli Hotel up on 
the hill were very agreeable. 

Resting and dressing and dining 
and gossiping with our fellow-tourists 



64 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

formed a pleasant conclusion to the 
day; and at a much earlier hour than 
we were accustomed to keep at home 
we went to bed, feeling sure that the 
very excellent railroad at the foot of 
the hill would wake us up between five 
and six in the morning, and that the 
only way to get enough sleep was to 
begin early. Why that railroad did 
not have enough to do in transporting 
its crowded trains back and forth 
across the Isthmus, without turning 
missionary and trying to inculcate 
the "early to bed and early to rise" 
maxim into the passing traveler, was 
more than we could understand. Such 
energy hardly accorded with the cli- 
mate, either, but then it was an Amer- 
ican road, which fact was explanation 



65 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

enough, and for that reason we for- 
gave it. 

We remembered, the very last 
thing, that we had not asked anybody 
about the west-coast boats. As there 
was no regular sight-seeing trip the 
next day, we resolved to drive over to 
Balboa in the morning to the steam- 
ship office, and make some inquiries 
of the agent. We were glad the reg- 
ular trips did not come on consecu- 
tive days. It was so much pleasanter 
to have time in between in which to 
do things by ourselves and assimilate 
what had gone before. Therefore we 
looked forward with satisfaction to 
the next two days. 



66 



IV. 

We could not have asked a more 
beautiful morning than the next one, 
and soon after breakfast we started 
on our expedition, with a driver, this 
time, afflictingly different from the 
genial and well-informed Alec of the 
Sunday before. He was a dusky indi- 
vidual of gloomy mien, who vouch- 
safed us neither look nor smile and 
spoke not a word except as it was 
dragged out of him. We felt truly 
grateful that the fates had granted us 
Alec for the visit to old Panama. 

Balboa, the objective point of our 
drive on this brilliant morning, is the 



67 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

port of the city of Panama and about 
two miles away. It is also the Pacific 
terminus of the Canal and is made up 
of machine shops, steamship docks, 
railroad yards and warehouses. At 
the steamship office a very pleasant 
young gentleman assured us that a 
voyage up to San Francisco was one 
of the most delightful anyone could 
take, that the accommodations were 
perfectly comfortable, the food excel- 
lent and we should miss the chance of 
our lives if we did not go that way. 
Quite reassured by these pleasing 
statements, which accorded so well 
with our desires, we would have made 
our reservations at once for the next 
boat, but he said it was not in yet and 
we should have to wait until he tele- 
phoned its arrival to the hotel. So we 



68 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

left, feeling that the matter was set- 
tled, and decided to spend the rest of 
the lovely morning driving. On the 
w^ay back towards Panama we talked 
about Balboa, the distinguished gen- 
tleman who 

"With eagle eyes 
Stared at the Pacific — and all his men 
Looked at each other with a wild sur- 
mise — 
Silent upon a peak in Darien." 
The above quotation is dreadfully 
overworked, but it seems impossible 
not to use it when speaking of Balboa. 
His name is a favorite one on the Isth- 
mus and is bestowed on many and 
various things, ranging from a city to 
a shoestring. It is certainly fitting 
that his memory should be honored, 
for he was a great man of gallant 



69 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

deeds and generous qualities, and ill 
deserved his ignominious end. 

Getting back to Panama, we ex- 
plored Ancon, the American quarter 
of the city, which is charmingly situ- 
ated up on the hill, with pure air and 
enchanting views. Many visitors to 
the Zone have mentioned the fact that 
the Canal towns are Japanese in ef- 
fect. Ancon, amid its palm groves, is 
especially so. The beauty and pictur- 
esqueness of the scene, both near and 
far, spread out before us that morn- 
ing, was worth a long journey to see. 
Up high, too, near by, are the hospital 
buildings and we were glad to know 
that the men of the Canal force had 
such a fine place in which to be ill — if 
they had to be ill. 

I don't understand, by the way. 



70 




O Oh 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

why the name "Ancon" should be so 
popular. It sounds well enough, to 
be sure, but as it is Spanish for "ana- 
conda," the unpleasant monster that 
inhabits the Panamanian jungle, the 
suggestion is not exactly comfortable. 
We were enveloped — the word writes 
itself — in the name during the whole 
trip. Our ship was named "Ancon," 
the Tivoli Hotel stands in the Amer- 
ican suburb of Ancon and close by is 
Ancon Hill. As we have no intention 
of ever penetrating the jungle, we 
hope our acquaintance with the na- 
tive beast will be confined to his 
name. 

After going on up Ancon Hill, as 
far as we could drive, to get still 
wider views and to see the quarries, 
we descended into Panama to look at 



73 




FAMOUS FLAT ARCH, RUINS OF SAN DOMINGO 
CHURCH, PANAMA CITY. 
Courtesy of Pan American ZTnion. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

some of the stock sights of the town. 
We visited one of the cathedrals — the 
one whose towers are trimmed with 
pearl shells that glitter in the sunlight 
from afar, especially after a shower — 
and the ruined church of San Domin- 
go, which contains the famous ''flat 
arch" that has stood for nearly three 
centuries, though nobod}^ can see 
why. This arch is so flat and so long 
that it looks as if a slight jar would 
send it tumbling, and the fact that it 
remains intact would tend to allay any 
fears one might have about earth- 
quakes in that region. 

Next, we went out on the sea-wall, 
a remnant of the old fortifications, 
from which there is a most beautiful 
view^, 3-i^d then, the forenoon being 
almost gone, drove back through the 



75 




AVE. B., A NARROW STREET, PANAMA. 
Courtesy of I.L.Mn(luro,Jr.,Panama. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

city to the hotel, detouring a little in 
order to see the National Theatre, the 
University and the President's man- 
sion. 

In Panama the people do not have 
detached residences like those in 
northern climes. They live above the 
shops and only in the country do they 
have individual places. In the best 
parts of the town the second stories 
— with sometimes a third — look very 
attractive, with their balconies and 
flowers and drooping vines and lace- 
draped windows, but always, under- 
neath, there is business of some kind, 
or else the first floor is shut up and 
presents a blank wall to the passerby. 
Over the roofs along the streets we 
could sometimes see trees projecting 
from behind, which indicated the ex- 



77 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

istence of inner courts and gardens; 
but the street fronts present always 
an appearance of extreme reserve and 
afford no glimpse of family life, ex- 
cept occasionally on the balconies, 
when the vines are not too thick. 

Panama has thirty-five thousand 
people and, on the whole, is a city 
worth seeing. Under the American 
regime it has been supplied with pure 
water, sewers and pavements, and is 
now a model for all tropical cities, be- 
ing kept scrupulously clean and all 
sanitary regulations being strictly en- 
forced. On its jutting coral penin- 
sula, with towering Ancon Hill in the 
background, with its narrow streets 
and Spanish architecture, its cathe- 
drals and plazas, its palms and foliage 
plants, its motley population and 



79 




NEW NATIONAL PALACE, OR PANAMA GOVERNMENT 

BUILDING, PANAMA CITY. 
Courtesy of Pan American Union. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

stream of tourists, it presents an en- 
semble full of interest and charm. 

That afternoon there was a break 
in our sight-seeing. R. was mingling 
a little work with his pleasure and de- 
cided to use the rest of the day for 
business purposes. Accordingly he 
departed immediately after luncheon, 
to be gone till dinnertime. 

Now, I had been looking for an odd 
half day, too, and for once, therefore, 
was glad to get rid of the dear man. 
Ever since landing at Colon, my whole 
soul had been longing for a shampoo 
and a manicure and all the beautifying 
rites so dear to the modern woman; 
and every time I passed through the 
lobby of the Tivoli my gaze lingered 
longingly on the large card suspended 
there, announcing that guests desir- 



81 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

ing such services could be accom- 
modated by leaving their request at 
the office. Here was my chance. 
When R. decided to leave me to my- 
self for the afternoon, I resolved to 
have a beautifying revel and on com- 
ing in from our drive that noon had 
made an appointment for two o'clock. 
Promptly on time the beautifying lady 
arrived and proved a very pleasant 
person. In response to my inquiries 
as to how she would ever get my hair 
dry in that humid atmosphere she 
opened her bag and showed me elec- 
trical appliances for everything, as- 
suring me with a smile that she would 
not leave me with a damp hair. And 
she didn't. She certainly understood 
her business and left my tresses clean, 
dry, light and warm. They might get 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

stringy again in the moist air, as they 
had done on the ocean, but for once 
they were in perfect condition. 

She had been down there four years 
she told me, and was kept pretty busy 
by the tourists and the American 
ladies living on the Isthmus. Hap- 
pening to think of it during the con- 
versation, I asked her what she knew 
about the west-coast boats. She said 
she did not really know anything, but 
had picked up an impression that they 
were pretty bad. This was a jolt, 
after our morning enthusiasm, but I 
said to myself that an impression was 
not of much importance, and soon for- 
got all about it in the joy of being re- 
juvenated, an experience which, as 
every woman knows, is a most soul- 
satisfying one. When the contents of 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

the bag had all been tried and its own- 
er had finished her ministrations and 
departed, I determined to follow up 
the good work by making a very spe- 
cial toilet for dinner. This filled up 
the time until R. arrived. In order to 
match my improved appearance he 
was obliged to devote an unusual 
amount of time to his own prepara- 
tions for the evening; but when we 
went down at seven o'clock the con- 
sciousness we carried within us of pre- 
senting a well-groomed appearance to 
the Tivoli world filled us with a great 
peace and compensated in advance for 
the hurried days to come when there 
would be no time for beauty rites or 
special toilets. 

While we were dining I told R. 
what the rejuvenating lady had said 



84 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

about the west-coast steamers, but he 
said, and I agreed with him, that we 
were foolish to let that question, 
bother us any more. The sensible 
thing to do was to carry out our plan 
and not be upset by every little thing 
we heard. Wait until we saw some 
one who had actually made the west- 
coast trip — then would be the time to 
pay attention to what was said. 

So ended Tuesday, the first day of 
our stay that it didn't rain. We 
wanted to go the next day, over to 
Colon, on the Atlantic side, and said 
to each other, the last thing, that we 
should probably have a moist time of 
it, as two successive pleasant days 
were not likely to happen at that time 
of the year. Even as we spoke the 
clouds descended and we went to sleep 
to the sound of a steady downpour. 



.85 



But we were wrong, for the rain 
stopped before morning and the fol- 
lowing day was as well behaved as 
one could desire. We were going to 
Colon to see the place and to give R. 
an opportunity to visit the general 
offices of the Panama Railroad which 
are located there. We left at ten- 
twenty and went straight across the 
Isthmus, arriving at Colon a little be- 
fore one. After lunching at the Wash- 
ington Hotel we separated, R. going 
to the railroad offices while I started 
out to see whatever there was worth 
looking at. The new hotel being 



87 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

built by the Government, at a cost of 
half a million dollars, first attracted 
me. It is delightfully situated, close 
to the Atlantic shore, and will be a 
strong rival for the Tivoli. Its com- 
pletion v\^ill no doubt put an end to 
the practice of taking the next train 
for Panama which is said to be so 
prevalent now among tourists arriv- 
ing at Colon. 

Then I walked along the beach until 
I came to the hospital, with its beauti- 
ful grounds, through which I strolled, 
wondering whether, if I had to choose, 
I would rather be sick up on the hill, 
among the trees, at Ancon, or down 
here at Colon, with the ocean waves 
at my very feet and their music always 
in my ears. Certainly the sick have 
beautiful surroundings and are well 



88 




HOSPITAL AND SANITARIUM AT TOBOGA ISLAND, 
PACIB^IC SIDE. 

Courtesy of Pan American Union. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

taken care of at both places. Besides 
the two hospitals, the Government 
maintains a sanatorium on the island 
of Taboga in Panama Bay, ten miles 
from the mainland, which is said to be 
ideally beautiful in location and sur- 
roundings. To our great regret, we 
did not have time to go here. 

On my way back I struck up an ac- 
quaintance with a bare-footed boy, 
who was probably lying in wait for 
such as I, and when we parted he was 
the proud possessor of two bright 
new dimes out of my bag and I carried 
away in their stead an almond just 
fallen from the tree — the fruit with 
the nut inside — a small, green cocoa- 
nut and various other impedimenta, 
all of which caused my bag to bulge 
in a very inelegant manner. R., when 



90 




COLUMBUS MONUMENT AT CRISTOBAL. 

Courtesy of Pan American Union. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

I rejoined him, was also carrying 
spoils, the most important being a 
walking stick made from an old lig- 
num-vitae tie that had been in use on 
the Panama Railroad for forty years, 
said walking stick having been given 
him by Mr. J. A. Smith, the genial 
General Superintendent of the Pana- 
ma Railroad. 

The rest of the afternoon, until 
train time, we spent in driving around 
the town. We went through Cristo- 
bal, which is the American quarter, 
and saw the house where De Lesseps 
used to live, the statue of "Columbus 
and the Indian Maiden" and the build- 
ings of the Commissary Department, 
which include a bakery, laundry and 
cold storage plant of sufficient capac- 
ity to serve all the government em- 



92 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

ployes and their families, about sixty 
thousand people in all. 

When finally our driver dropped us 
at the station in time for the four- 
thirty-five train to Panama, we w^on- 
dered if it could be only four days 
ago that v^^e had landed at Colon and 
taken this train for the first time. 
Then all semed so strange that now 
had grown so familiar. 

There was no work going on in the 
Cut that night when we crossed and, 
in fact, we never did see the picture 
of the work by firelight except the one 
time. 

A gentleman whom we met that 
evening told us of some friends of his 
who had once come from San Fran- 
cisco to Panama by water. He said 
they had announced their firm deter- 



93 




Mm^^ 




BEACH AT CRISTOBAL. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

mination to walk every step of the 
way the next time, rather than repeat 
the first experience. We hastily in- 
quired what boat they had come on 
and were relieved when he did not 
name the one we expected to take. 
He added some details which after- 
wards, in private, we talked over 
somewhat dejectedly. What made 
the matter important was that the 
voyage would take twenty-six days, 
perhaps longer, and that R. had 
brought me to the tropics on a quest 
for health, as well as to see the Canal. 
He, himself, not being in the habit of 
giving up a plan once made and 
started, would have gone on unhesi- 
tatingly; but on my account he did 
not want to run any risks. A month 
at sea with poor food and stuffy state- 



95 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

rooms and coal-oil lamps and possi- 
ble heat and storms might undo all 
the good gained thus far. 

For the first time, we said that 
perhaps it would be better to 
go back to New York; but the 
desire to make the west-coast 
trip was so strong in both of us 
that giving it up was not yet to be 
considered seriously. We really want- 
ed to do, though, whatever would re- 
sult in greatest benefit to us both. 
'Twas a problem. To go on — to go 
back — which was the solution? The 
friendly rain, which just then reap- 
peared, gave us no help except to lull 
us to pleasant slumber. 



96 



VI. 

A visit to the locks and dam at 
Gatun was the program for the next 
day, and at ten-twenty we took the 
train and went almost across the Isth- 
mus again, Gatun being only seven 
miles from the Atlantic coast. The 
good looking railroad station at this 
point is meant to be permanent and 
is therefore built of stone. The wait- 
ing room is outside — just a big plat- 
form with seats and a roof, like an in- 
side waiting room without the side 
walls. It seemed strange to be in a 
country where no provision for cold 
weather is ever needed, and where 



97 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

chimneys and stoves and fireplaces 
and heating apparatus generally 
are totally absent. People who 
go there from the North, where 
they are used to the changes of our 
seasons, tire of the eternal warmth 
after a while; but for a short stay the 
climate is not unpleasant, even in the 
rainy season. During our sojourn 
there it was always warm enough to 
wear the thinnest clothing, yet the 
heat was never oppressive. The even- 
ings and nights were invariably com- 
fortable. It is the humidity that is ex- 
treme, not the temperature. Best of 
all, we never saw or felt a mosquito 
anywhere on the Isthmus. As to the 
wet and dr}^ seasons, some of the resi- 
dents told me they much preferred the 
former, because nothing wore on them 



98 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

like the ceaseless, day-after-day glare 
of the sun. 

When the climate gets on the nerves 
of the American women down there, 
so that they begin to yearn for brac- 
ing winds and driving snow storms 
and frosted window panes, they have 
to go up to the States to get straight- 
ened out; otherwise, if they can't 
leave, they sometimes go to pieces un- 
der the strain. 

On our arrival at Gatun we had 
hunted up the Commission dining- 
room for lunch and then returned to 
the station to wait for the sight-seeing 
car. Although there was a gentle rain 
falling, we did not mind it much and 
looked forward with special interest 
to this expedition, which would show 
us the biggest piece of concrete work 



99 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

on earth and the mountain built by 
man to hold in a raging river. Our 
anticipations were exceeded. The 
Gatun locks are a double flight of 
three, the total length of the flight, 
with approach walls, being thirty-five 
hundred feet, and the entire width 
about three hundred feet at the top. 
The side walls are eighty-one feet high 
and fifty feet thick at the floor level, 
tapering narrower towards the top. 
The middle wall is of the same height 
and sixty feet thick all the way up. 
The gates are from forty-seven to 
eight3^-one feet high, according to lo- 
cation, and seven feet thick. When 
the Canal is done, five million cubic 
yards of concrete will have been used 
and of this amount ninety-three per 
cent was already in place. 



101 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

The impression of massiveness, of 
immensity, or endnringness, that one 
receives from looking at all the con- 
crete work is here at its height. We 
stood at the upper end and gazed 
down the two-thirds of a mile in 
length, through which great ships 
will be lifted eighty-five feet, in three 
steps from the ocean level to Gatun 
Lake — and felt oppressed with the 
magnitude of it all. 

The time required will be half an 
hour to a lock; therefore, of the ten 
or twelve hours transit through the 
completed Canal, three hours will be 
spent in the locks. 

The protective devices — the elec- 
tric locomotives, the chains, the dou- 
ble gates and the emergency dam — 
were explained to us and formed one 



102 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

of the most interesting features of the 
work. It seems impossible that any 
serious accident should ever happen 
to ships or locks. 

During all this time, while we were 
walking the walls and trying to hear 
one another speak above the frightful 
din made by the workmen riveting 
the gates, the rain fell drizzlingly, but 
we were so interested that we were 
hardly aware of it, for no one takes 
cold or feels shivery from getting wet 
in that country, and as soon as we re- 
gained the car we were all right. 

The next thing to see was the dam, 
and as it is covered with tracks we 
went around and around it at differ- 
ent levels, until we got a clear idea of 
its size and situation. It is not a 
piece of masonry, but a huge earth 



103 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

structure, placed so as to complete the 
natural basin formed by the range of 
mountains surrounding the low-lying 
valley of the Chagres River. In this 
way the waters of the river are shut in 
and Gatun Lake formed, with its area 
of one hundred and sixty-four square 
miles. The dam is a mile and a half 
long, half a mile thick at the base and 
one hundred feet wide at the top. Its 
crest is one hundred and five feet 
above sea level and twenty feet above 
the surface of the water of the lake. 
The dam is quite as impressive as the 
locks after one realizes its size and 
understands its office and construc- 
tion; but, at first, it is so much a part 
of the landscape and looks so exactly 
as if it had "just growed" there that 
one feels a sense of disappointment. 



104 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

Afterwards the very facts that caused 
the disappointment are recognized as 
a great part of the tremendous 
achievement. 

And eight3^-five feet up in the air, 
held there b}" the vast strength of 
this dam and the locks, will be the 
Canal — a fresh water link between the 
two great oceans ! 

Then there is the spillway. The 
waters of Gatun Lake are furnished, 
as stated, by the Chagres River, 
which, on account of the excessive an- 
nual rainfall of about twelve feet, is 
subject to enormous floods. In order 
to provide against the effect of these 
floods there has been constructed 
what is known as the spillway, which 
is an artificial channel of concrete, 
three hundred feet wide, built into the 



105 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

dam at about the center, through 
which the surplus waters of the lake 
flow. The discharge through the spill- 
way is regulated by means of gates in 
such a way that the waters of Gatun 
Lake are maintained at an elevation 
of about eighty-five feet above sea- 
level. The spillway will be capable 
of discharging 154,000 cubic feet of 
water per second, which equals three- 
fifths of the volume of water which 
passes over the Horseshoe Falls at 
Niagara. 

This immense volume of water, 
having a fall of about seventy-five 
feet, will furnish power sufficient to 
operate the locks and all other appli- 
ances belonging to the Canal, to light 
the Canal throughout its whole length 
and to operate the railroad from Co- 
lon to Panama. 



106 






Profile of the 

PANAMA CANAL 




Atlatsttic ocean 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

In this connection, it is a curious 
fact that although the Isthmus is only 
about fifty miles wide, the average 
annual rainfall on the Atlantic side is 
about twelve feet, while on the Pacific 
side it is only about six feet. This was 
explained to me at great length by R., 
who claims- to know something about 
such things, and in the course of his 
remarks I gathered that the remark- 
able difference is due to the effect of 
ocean and atmospheric currents and 
to the temperature of these currents 
in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans re- 
spectively. 

He advises me, however, not to un- 
dertake a technical explanation of this 
phenomenon lest I should sprain my 
ankle — whatever that may mean. 

On our wav back across the Isth- 



107 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

mus that afternoon I meditated aloud 
to R. on the subject of clothes. No- 
body seems to know exactly what to 
take down there, the first time, but 
after my five days' experience and ob- 
servation I felt able to give pointers 
on the subject. In the first place, the 
Canal Zone being only nine degrees 
from the equator, nothing but sum- 
mer clothing is needed. White clothes 
look and feel the coolest of all, but as 
white skirts look worse than anything 
else when wet and muddy, it seemed 
to me that the best provision to make 
for the rainy season would be a couple 
of light-weight wool skirts of a neu- 
tral gray or tan shade, and a lot of 
thin white waists. One skirt might 
be made to do, but the trouble is that 
in that saturated atmosphere a gar- 



108 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

ment that gets wet one day is not dry 
by the next; so two, to be used in al- 
ternation, would be better. With the 
addition of a serviceable hat, a light 
raincoat and an umbrella, one could 
go about sight-seeing indefinitely. A 
pretty gown for dinner would com- 
plete the list of essentials, for no 
wraps are needed — unless, perhaps, a 
scarf — and no other hats, for in driv- 
ing about in the evening it is pleasant 
to go bare-headed. 

Of course there are plenty of people 
who carry a lot of clothes around with 
them and like to wear something dif- 
ferent every evening, but for the or- 
dinary tourist who stops at a hotel 
and is there only to see the Canal 
work, what I have mentioned would 
be sufficient. In the dry season, from 



109 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

December to April, thin white clothes 
can be worn everywhere and all the 
time. The men — not to leave them 
out entirely — wear either white linen 
or light-weight wool suits, such as 
they would wear in the States in the 
summer time. 

Some examples of inappropriate 
dressing are amusing to remember. 
That very day a good lookins: young 
woman of about thirty had boarded 
the car, attired in a style which sug- 
gested that she was laboring under 
the delusion that we were about to 
attend an elaborate garden party. Her 
dress was of some thin white mate- 
rial, put together with lace, with elbow 
sleeves and collarless neck; she wore 
white shoes, but no hat or gloves ; her 
hair was fussily arranged with nu- 



110 




rn 

H 
H 
C^ 
H 

H 

<! 
O 
O 
O 
O 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

merous ornaments; necklaces, rings 
and bracelets adorned her person; 
and, as a, final touch, she carried a 
white silk parasol trimmed with lace. 
When we reached the locks it was 
raining and she declined to get out, 
saying she would remain where she 
was until it stopped; but it didn't stop 
and she continued to remain, never 
leaving the car the whole afternoon. 
What her idea was in getting herself 
up in that fashion was — and is — one 
of the inscrutable mysteries of life. 

Another lady, who appeared looking 
warm but charming in a white serge 
suit, with white hat, shoes and gloves, 
was gamer than the other, and not to 
be deterred from seeing things by any 
fear of spoiling her clothes. She got 
out whenever the others did and went 



112 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

about regardless of mud, paint, oil 
and grimy workmen. No doubt, 
though, she retired to her couch that 
night a sadder and a wiser woman. 

Engaged in these sartorial reflec- 
tions and reminiscences, we passed 
once more over the now familiar route 
to the Pacific side. Our evening was 
a repetition of those that had gone be- 
fore. We usually inspected the regis- 
ter after dinner to see who had ar- 
rived during the day and from what 
uttermost parts of the earth they had 
come; then sat down, or strolled 
through the big spaces of the Tivoli 
to watch the crowd and chat with 
those we became acquainted with 
from day to day. 

Finally, after going upstairs, we 
discussed our "problem" some more. 



113 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

and rather laughed at our scare of the 
night before. We decided that we had 
been unnecessarily alarmed and re- 
solved once more not to listen to all 
the second-hand talk that was float- 
ing around, but to go ahead. The 
subject was rather getting on our 
nerves. R., especially, among whose 
leading qualities may be mentioned 
firmness, perseverance, determina- 
tion, persistency, unswervingness, 
stick-to-ativeness, tenacity of purpose 
and decision of character, was quite 
incensed at the vacillating position in 
which he found himself, and expressed 
himself with considerable vigor. 
There were always dissatisfied people 
everywhere, who went about saying 
things. We should never get any- 
where if we paid any attention to 



114 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

them. Besides, granting that all we 
heard was true, what did it amount 
to, after all ? We should have the sea- 
air and the rest — nobody, as yet, had 
complained that they were lacking on 
the west-coast trip. The food might 
not be all that was desirable, but sure- 
ly there would be fruit and bread and 
coffee and some few other things that 
we could live on^and we could take 
some supplies with us. To be sure, 
he, himself, just had to have good cof- 
fee and we were both cranky about 
butter and the sea-air does give people 
appetites; but nevertheless, he was in- 
clined to think we could risk the food 
proposition. 

As for the staterooms, we didn't 
stay in them except to sleep and we 



115 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

could always sleep anywhere at sea. 
Lights we didn't need except to go to 
bed by, and they were not an absolute 
necessity then. What risk was there, 
after all? If it was hot, was not he a 
regular salamander and did not I 
much prefer heat to cold ? If it storm- 
ed, were not we experienced ocean 
travelers, used to rough weather? 
Hadn't we tossed in a hurricane once 
for two days and nights? Goto! We 
would wobble no more, but pursue our 
plan as arranged and agreed upon be- 
fore ever we left our Missouri hearth- 
stone. 

R. is rather funny when he is letting 

oil steam in this fashion, so I laughed 
at him and meekly agreed with all 
that he said. Equilibrium being thus 



116 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

restored, we gave ourselves up to 
"tired nature's sw^eet restorer," the 
sound of the steady rain outside fur- 
nishing us with a most soothing lulla- 
by. 



117 



VII. 

When we realized the next day that 
it was Friday and that we had been 
there almost a week, we began to feel 
that "tempus was fugiting" all too 
fast. After breakfast, having ascer- 
tained that our boat had not yet ar- 
rived at Balboa, we went for a drive, 
going first to the Administration 
Building in Ancon, where R. had bus- 
iness to attend to. This building is of 
stone and very handsome, being in- 
tended for permanent use. Many of 
the buildings, and even whole towns, 
along the Canal are only temporary 
and will be torn down when the Canal 



118 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

is finished; but this Administration 
Building at Ancon, which stands in a 
lovely spot with a beautiful outlook, 
is meant to stay. 

From there we went down into 
Panama to do some shopping, almost 
the first we had indulged in. We did 
not find a great variety of things to 
buy for souvenirs or gifts, but there 
were Panama hats, of course — all 
made in Equador — and some pretty 
things made out of mother of pearl, 
which comes from the fisheries off the 
coast, and jewelry set with stones 
taken from Culebra Cut, and mats and 
bags made by the Indian women — 
quite enough, after all, to enable us 
to dispose of a good part of our list 
of people to whom we wished to take 
some little gift. 



119 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

Carrying our purchases with us, we 
drove hastily back to the hotel to 
dress and lunch, for we were going to 
Culebra that afternoon on a little pri- 
vate expedition of our own and our 
train left at half past one. We caught 
it with a few minutes to spare and on 
our arrival at Culebra, a little after 
two, we went first up the hill in the 
ambulance to the Administration 
Building to call on Col. Goethals. R. 
had letters of introduction to him and 
had called on the preceding Tuesday, 
but had found the Colonel out, of 
which I was very glad for now I was 
with him and could meet the great 
man, too. We were fortunate enough 
to find him in and were ushered by 
his secretary into his private office 
where he was sitting alone at his desk. 



120 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

He greeted us most cordially, refer- 
ring at once to our acquaintance with 
Mrs. Goethals, and we spent a very 
pleasant half hour — all we dared take 
of such a busy man's time — the two 
men discussing railroad matters chief- 
ly, while I gazed respectfully at the 
famous and popular autocrat with his 
blue eyes, white hair, tanned skin, 
courteous manners and agreeable 
laugh. He talked a little about the 
Canal work and then, as we rose to 
leave, suggested that we go at once 
over to his house to see Mrs. Goethals, 
as he knew she was at home and 
would be glad to see us. As we want- 
ed to meet her again before leaving 
the Isthmus, we acted on this invita- 
tion. Going a little way along the 
top of the hill we soon came to their 



121 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

pleasant-looking home, a big house 
with screened porches at every story, 
after the prevailing American type, 
and with flowers and vines and plants 
in lovely profusion all around. The 
foliage plants in that country are won- 
derful everywhere, but those on Cule- 
bra Hill are the most gorgeous of all. 
A man-servant took our cards, gave 
us seats on the wide porch and silently 
vanished. Presently Mrs. Goethals 
appeared, accompanied by a friend, 
Miss B. Mrs. Goethals is a tall, slen- 
der, sweet-faced woman, of the refined 
and reserved type, and our brief ac- 
quaintance with her will always be a 
pleasant memory. She took us 
through the house — which looked 
most attractive, with its flowers and 
light wicker furniture — to a side porch 



122 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

commanding a noble view which she 
wanted us to see, and there we had a 
pleasant little chat while gazing at the 
lovely prospect before us. 

As we were leaving she inquired it 
we still held to our intention of going 
home by the west coast, and when we 
replied affirmatively Miss B. threw up 
her hands, fell against a porch pillar 
and exclaimed, with a look or horror, 
"You don't mean it!" Considerably 
startled, we demanded the cause of 
her emotion, upon which she briefly 
stated, "I've tried it;" but, recovering 
herself, she went on to say that if we 
were going that way she was sorry 
she had made us uncomfortable, and 
anyhow, her experience was some 
time ago and no doubt things had im- 
proved immensely since then. With 



123 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

this we departed and walked solemnly 
down the hill, feeling considerably 
upheaved. Now had happened what 
we had agreed would be worth our at- 
tention. We had met some one who 
had actually made the west-coast trip 
— and almost fainted at the thought 
of it. What should we do now? Sud- 
denly wearying of the whole question, 
I suggested that we throw it into a 
clump of bushes we were just then 
passing and leave it there until we 
came back that way to take the train 
— an idea which R. received with fa- 
vor. We should gain only a short res- 
pite, of course, for even if we neglect- 
ed to pick it up again, we felt quite 
sure it would find its way back to the 
Tivoli without our help, but on this 
expedition we had a strong desire for 



124 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

nobod3^'s company but each other's; 
so by united effort we cast the unwel- 
come third party from us and went on 
our way rejoicing. Our objective 
point this time was the suspension 
bridge across the Canal at Empire, a 
mile or so away. The next day we 
were going through the Cut with the 
crowd on the train, but today we 
wanted to do something that was not 
on the regular program, and that was 
to look at the excavation work, at the 
busiest point, from the bridge above. 
Fortunately, it was not raining, 
though there had been showers earlier 
in the day, and we followed a mean- 
dering wagon road, inquiring our way 
occasionally, to be sure we were right. 
Presently, emerging suddenly from 
behind a hill, we found ourselves at 



125 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

the bridge. It is a long one but we 
walked straight out to the middle of 
it before stopping to look at anything 
— and then looked for a long time 
without stopping. 

There we were, suspended in mid 
air, in the great Culebra Cut, with all 
the activities that had produced it in 
full operation two or three hundred 
feet below us. There were drills — 
more impressive to the ear than to the 
eye — and steam shovels — the most 
fascinating things on earth — and dirt 
trains — coming in, going out and be- 
ing loaded — and workmen every- 
where — most insignificant looking in 
the great space so far below us. Yet, 
with all the work in full view, when 
we lifted our gaze to that great open- 
ing through the hills it seemed almost 



126 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

impossible to believe that it had been 
wrought by man. And then, as our 
eyes fell on the simple legend, "U. S.," 
that adorns the locomotives and ma- 
chinery, and we realized that it was 
our own country that was carrying 
through this marvelous task, we were 
filled with a fearful pride. 

This bridge at Empire is the only 
one across the Canal and it is merely 
a temporary one, no provision having 
been made for permanent bridges. 
We felt thankful for this one that af- 
ternoon and found the scene below it 
so absorbingly interesting that but 
for the fact that we were to see it 
again the next day, we should have 
found difficulty in tearing ourselves 
away. As it was, having neglected to 
ascertain the exact time at which the 



127 




EMPIRE. CANAL ZONE. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

train would pass on its afternoon trip 
to Panama, we presently wended our 
way back towards the railroad; but 
instead of going to the Culebra sta- 
tion, where we had alighted early in 
the afternoon, we decided to take the 
train at Empire, which was nearer. 
Finding on arriving there that we had 
an hour to wait, it occurred to us that 
we had never visited one of the com- 
missaries and that here was our op- 
portunity, because there was one close 
by. The commissaries are Govern- 
ment department stores where Gov- 
ernment employes and their families 
may buy all kinds of supplies at some- 
what lower rates than we pay in the 
States and at very much lower rates 
than those charged by the native 
merchants on the Isthmus. The one 



129 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

at Empire seemed to have a little of 
everything for sale — groceries, dry 
goods, shoes, millinery, furniture, 
dishes and hardware — and we were 
told that ice, meats, bread, pies, cakes, 
ice cream and laundry service could 
be ordered when desired. Every 
morning at four o'clock a supply train 
of twenty-one cars leaves Cristobal, 
carrying meats, ice, other perishable 
food stuffs and various supplies, all 
of which are distributed by means of 
these commissaries. 

But we could not buy anything, no, 
not even though we had carried a mil- 
lion dollars in our pockets, because we 
did not work for the Government. 
And I wanted a new veil, too. 

The place seemed to be a rendez- 
vous for the feminine population and 



130 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

we were quite interested in watching 
the numerous young matrons with de- 
lightful babies and small children, all 
in pretty summer afternoon array, 
who made their purchases and then 
remained to chat with friends, or 
strolled around the neighborhood, 
waiting probably for the train which 
would bring the husbands and fathers 
home from their work. 

As this consumed only a few min- 
utes of our time we continued on up 
the main street, passing the post of- 
fice, which appeared to be as popular 
as the commissary, and went into the 
Y. M. C. A. building, one of a number 
in the Canal Zone, of whose import- 
ance in the life down there we had 
heard a good deal. It was a big, two- 
storied structure, surrounded by the 



131 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

usual screened porches at both stories, 
and stood back from the street in a 
green yard, filled with beautiful tropi- 
cal plants. It was really the most at- 
tractive place in town. On entering, 
we encountered an eager group 
around a bulletin board and discov- 
ered that they were reading the base- 
ball news just received from the States 
by cable. This was in October and 
the games of the world's series were 
then going on. Being fans ourselves 
we lingered a minute with this con- 
genial bunch and then, beholding 
through a distant doorway some peo- 
ple sitting on a back porch and drink- 
ing things out of tall glasses, we were 
suddenly conscious of a consuming 
thirst, and flew to refresh ourselves in 
a similar manner with cold lemonade. 



133 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

The adjoining reading room next at- 
tracted us and there I found a file of 
one of our home papers, the first I 
had seen since we started away early 
in September. While I looked hasti- 
ly through it R. cast himself into an 
easy chair with a magazine, and thus 
agreeably employed we almost forgot 
there was a train to catch, but thought 
of it just in time and rushed away, 
without seeing any more of the build- 
ing than a passing glance at the li- 
brary and billiard room. On the way 
into Panama, however, we discussed 
what we had heard of the work of the 
Y. M. C. A. in the Canal Zone, and 
agreed that such a building as the one 
we had seen was probably worth more 
to the morals of a Canal town than 



184 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

all the laws against vice that could be 
framed. 

In this connection it may be stat- 
ed that there are thirty-five or forty 
churches in the Zone, of many differ- 
ent denominations, and all — Catholic, 
Protestant, Christian Science or Sal- 
vation Army — are w^elcomed and 
treated alike by the Government. 

Thus drew to a close one of the 
pleasantest days we had spent on the 
Isthmus. Owing to our having taken 
the train at Empire instead of Cule- 
bra, we had not repassed the bushes 
into which our "problem" had been 
flung two or three hours before; be- 
sides, we had been so interested in 
other things that we had forgotten all 
about it; but, true to our prophecy, it 
reached the Tivoli almost as soon as 



135 



GLIMPSES OP PANAMA 

we did, in a very refreshed and lively 
condition, moreover, and, as if to 
make up for the banishment of the af- 
ternoon, and probably, also, because 
it felt that its days with us were al- 
most numbered, stuck to us till bed- 
time with the proverbial closeness of 
a brother. Fortunately it did not fol- 
low us into our dreams. 



136 



VIII. 

' As our shopping was still to be fin- 
ished we went down into the city the 
next morning after breakfast, and 
came back only in time to eat some 
luncheon and get to the station in 
time to take the sight-seeing train for 
the trip to Culebra Cut. 

There had been slight showers in 
the morning, but the afternoon open- 
ed beautifully and it seemed hardly 
possible that even the Panama weath- 
er could manage to transform itself 
before we got back. Our chief hope 
for a clear afternoon, however, lay in 
the fact that those who on previous 



137 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

expeditions had started out in white 
skirts and shoes, flowered hats and 
such frailties, and returned spotted 
and bedraggled, now appeared in sen- 
sible, shower-proof clothing, ready for 
any fate that could be compressed in- 
to three hours of weather. It worked 
like a charm, too, for the afternoon 
was ideal. We could have worn our 
best clothes with perfect safety. More- 
over, as we did not once get out of the 
car, even if it had rained we should 
not have been damaged. Such is life! 
As soon as we started, our lecturer 
began to give us interesting informa- 
tion about the excavation work, and 
continued to do so at intervals all the 
afternoon. Yesterday, from the sus- 
pension bridge above, the poetic side 
of the work had appealed to us ; today, 



138 




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^ 


cd 



10 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

down in the midst of it, we absorbed 
statistics and reveled in practical de- 
tails. There were then seventy-five 
miles of track in the Cut — of which a 
mile or so was changed every day to 
suit the advancing work — and at Pe- 
dro Miguel we left the Panama Rail- 
road for these construction tracks, go- 
ing very slowly and stopping fre- 
quently, in order to see the different 
gangs of workmen at their varied 
tasks and to listen to the explanation 
of each part of the work. When the 
excavation is finished 90,000,000 cubic 
yards of rock and earth will have been 
taken out, leaving a cut nine miles 
long and three hundred feet wide at 
the bottom. As it follows, in part, a 
winding river valley, there are bends 
in it, and at these points it is widened 



140 




INLAND LIGHTHOUSE ON LINE OF CANAL. 
Courtesy of Pan American Union. 



GLIMPSES OP PANAMA 

to five hundred feet in order that the 
largest vessels may make the turns 
with perfect ease. At each angle, too, 
there w^ill be a lighthouse. In the 
neighborhood of Culebra, where the 
continental divide was severed, the 
depth of the cut averages three hun- 
dred and seventy-five feet and the 
width at the top eighteen hundred 
feet. Reduced to an average, it is a 
cut nine miles long, three hundred feet 
wide at the bottom and one hundred 
and twenty feet deep throughout its 
entire length. 

The material taken out is first drill- 
ed and then blasted before it is hand- 
led by the steam shovels, and five hun- 
dred thousand pounds of dynamite are 
used each month in this work. The 
shooting is done at five o'clock in the 



142 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

afternoon, when the day's work is 
over, and the roar thereof is like unto 
the crack of doom. 

We were told much about the slides, 
of which there is quite a number, in- 
volving an area of one hundred and 
sixty acres. The largest is the Cu- 
caracha slide, which started during 
the French time, now covers an area 
of forty-seven acres and runs back 
eighteen hundred feet. These slides 
are hard to manage and greatly in- 
crease the work, forty-five per cent of 
the remaining excavation being due 
to them; but as they call for no other 
treatment than unremitting excava- 
tion at the top they will finally be 
brought under control. 

The moving of the dirt trains, too, 
was explained and proved an extreme- 



143 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

ly interesting subject. Getting rid of 
the excavated material was one of the 
big problems and its solution took 
time and brains. One hundred and 
fifty loaded trains pass out of the Cut 
daily — about one every three minutes 
—running on a regular schedule and 
nothing being allov^ed to interfere 
with their movements. The material 
they carry is used in building the dam 
at Gatun and the breakwaters at Co- 
lon and Panama. 

Among the comparative figures 
that are hurled at one from all direc- 
tions while looking at the Canal work, 
there are some that fit in here. It is es- 
timated that all of the excavated ma- 
terial which will have been taken out 
when the Canal is completed, includ- 
ing the 30,000,000 cubic yards of util- 



145 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

ized French excavation, amounting in 
all to 242,000,000 cubic yards, if load- 
ed on one train of flat cars, like those 
used on the work, would make a train 
ninety-six thousand miles long, reach- 
ing practically four times around the 
earth. 

Incidentally, in going over the 
work, one picks up a good deal of in- 
formation about the French attempt 
to build the Canal and, also, along 
with it, a great sympathy for the 
French engineers who worked so hard 
and accomplished so much in the face 
of death and disease and their own 
pitful ignorance of the conditions they 
were up against. It was not they who 
were to blame for their country's fail- 
ure. Rusty, half- buried French ma- 
chinery can be seen at many places 



146 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

along the Canal, and there is a ceme- 
tery where lie buried hundreds of 
Frenchmen who perished in those un- 
sanitary days. As Albert Edwards, in 
his interesting book on Panama, says, 
"There is an immense pathos in the 
idea of these men working so sincere- 
ly, in the midst of this fever-ridden 
jungle, for a gang of wild-cat promot- 
ers in Paris." 

The French excavation amounted 
to 80,000,000 cubic yards, of which, 
as stated, 30,000,000 have been used 
by the Americans. The French also 
made maps and accumulated data, in- 
cluding the flow of the Chagres river 
through fifteen years, which have been 
of inestimable value to our engineers. 
The latter are said to have a thorough 
respect for their French predecessors. 



147 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

As we noticed the mud in which the 
workmen stood and how their clothes 
clung to them with perspiration, we 
got a new realization of the endurance 
required in sticking to this mighty 
task, year after year. Two-thirds of 
the time they work in almost daily 
rain and mud; the other third, under 
the ceaseless glare of the sun. Never 
a cool day or a bracing wind or a dry 
atmosphere to put new life into them 
— just rain and glare and heat and hu- 
midity ! And yet they are said to be a 
contented lot, these thirty-five thou- 
sand men who are doing this wonder- 
ful thing. There is a certain fascina- 
tion about the "big job," of course, 
and nowhere on earth is there a body 
of employes so well cared for as this 
one. Besides receiving higher wages 



148 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

for the same kind of work, they are 
obliged to spend less for their living 
than would be the case anywhere else 
on the globe. Their lodgings are free 
and their food is furnished them at 
very low rates. A West Indian negro, 
for instance, who, on his native island, 
might earn a quarter a day for a part 
of the year, here receives a dollar a 
day, free lodgings and a day's food 
for thirty cents. Among the white 
Americans, a married man is given a 
furnished house, electric lights, kitch- 
en fuel and moving expenses free, and 
his food, ice and clothing at reduced 
prices. Medical and hospital service 
cost nothing. Nowhere else could he 
live so well and save so much. In ad- 
dition to all this, he is given a month 
off every year with pay and special 



149 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

traveling rates. We became ac- 
quainted with one young couple who 
had been there six years and they 
told us that they expected to go back 
to the States after a while with 
enough money saved up to render 
them almost independent. 

The only trouble with the married 
men seems to be in keeping their 
wives contented. Household labor is 
light and service is cheap, therefore 
the women are not so busy as the men 
and have time to get homesick. But 
the Government tackled that prob- 
lem, too, and imported an organizer 
of clubs to help the women find em- 
ployment for the spare time which 
otherwise they might use in thinking 
about the climate and the far-away 
"God's country." As a result, there 



150 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

are art classes, literary clubs, musical 
societies, playground associations 
and anti-cigarette leagues scattered 
among the towns along the Canal, 
and these various activities render 
much pleasanter and more profitable 
the lives of the American women 
there. 

I read some club programs in the 
''Canal Record" and was much im- 
pressed by their interest and variety. 
They included "A McDowell After- 
noon," "Wedgewood and Royal 
Doulton," "A Review of New Books," 
"Well-known Women Writers," 
"Modern Pictures of Children," "Ste- 
venson's Verse and Song," "System 
in the Home," "Modern Kitchens," 
"Domestic Animals" and "Garden- 
ing." an assortment of topics which 



151 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

would seem to indicate that our exiled 
sisters in the Canal Zone are not fall- 
ing behind the modern procession. 

Uncle Sam certainly has a good 
deal on his hands in the ten-mile strip 
across the Isthmus. Besides building 
the Canal, he is running a railroad, a 
steamship line and a big hotel for 
tourists and feeding, housing, amus- 
ing and keeping contented about six- 
ty thousand people. But all this is 
necessary in order to maintain a 
stable working force. 

To go back to the Cut: thus look- 
ing and listening, moving on when 
the track was clear, but stopping 
about every other minute to accom- 
modate one of the ubiquitous dirt 
trains, we slowly traversed the length 
of the Cut towards the Atlantic coast. 



152 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

At Gamboa is a dike which protects 
the Cut from the rising waters of 
Gatun Lake, adjacent. When the 
necessary dry excavation is finished 
this dike will be removed, the water 
let into the Cut, and the remainder 
of the excavation done with dredges. 

Near the end the banks were low 
and we could see the surrounding 
country. It was an interesting 
thought that some day, not far away, 
we should be able to slip smoothly 
along on a great ship, which would 
walk upstairs at one end and down 
the other, of this beautiful promenade 
through the green jungle and lofty 
hills of Panama. 

At Matachin we turned back and 
returned to Culebra, where the train 
stopped a while to allow the passen- 



154 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

gers to go up to the Administration 
Building and look at the lock models. 
As we had already seen them, we said 
goodby to Mr. Baxter, our lecturer, 
to whose clear explanations and un- 
failing courtesy we owed much of the 
pleasure of the sight-seeing trips, and 
took a walk instead. This was well 
worth while, for Culebra is a pretty 
spot, the highest point on the Canal, 
with a wide outlook. While walking 
we discussed the experiences of the 
week just closing and our impressions 
of the Canal work, which we had now 
seen in all its divisions. As a final 
summing-up we adopted the words 
of a fellow-tourist and agreed with 
each other that the Panama Canal 
would make the seven wonders of the 
world look like thirty cents. 



155 

11 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

During the short ride back to Pana- 
ma, R. and I were separated and I ob- 
served him, some seats ahead of me, 
in earnest conversation with an un- 
known and harmless-looking man 
who had been one of the party 
through the Cut. An interest, appar- 
ently not of an agreeable nature, ap- 
peared on R.'s face and seemed to be 
the cause of the disturbed glances he 
threw in my direction. "Who can the 
agitating individual be?" I asked of 
myself uneasily, "and what dire in- 
formation can he be imparting?" I 
was soon to know. As the train 
pulled into Panama station and I 
reached R.'s side, he seized my arm 
and announced in hurried accents, 
"Our boat is in — got in this morning 
— that man was on it — says it's 



156 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

fierce." For an instant I gazed at 
him wildly, and then, "We'll go back 
on the 'Ancon,'" I announced with de- 
cision, clutching at the thought as at 
an ark of safety. Other perfectly 
good ships were leaving Colon for the 
north right along, but just then only 
the known and the tried appealed to 
me; so, taking the lead for once, I 
led my somewhat startled spouse 
across the waiting room to the ticket 
office. The agent was busy. While 
waiting impatiently, we remarked to 
a pleasant looking bystander who ap- 
peared to be taking an interest in us 
that we had intended to go back to 
the States by the west coast but had 
heard such unfavorable reports of the 
"X." the boat we should have to take, 
that we had given up the plan. "Good 



157 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

thing!" he responded sympathetic- 
ally, "that's the boat that had its 
deck blown up not long ago." "Deck 
blown up!" I repeated shudderingly, 
"and what did they do about it?^' 
"Oh, just nailed it down and went on 
again!" he replied airily. At this in- 
formation that "problem" of ours — 
or its ghost — which even yet — if 
you'll believe it — was showing itself 
dimly around corners here and there, 
turned and fled, to be seen no more. 
Poor food we might endure — and bad 
lights — and insufficient ventilation — 
and heat — and storms — but to be 
blown into the air, probably in 
chunks, and fall into the deep as food 
for the fishes, that fate I, at least, de- 
clined with all the firmness that was 
in me. "What can I do for you?" said 



158 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

the agent at this instant. "Get Colon 
and see if there is anything left on 
the 'Ancon/ " commanded R. in few- 
est words — and the decision in his 
tone cheered my very soul. "Noth- 
ing left but one private suite," an- 
swered the agent, after the inevitable 
wait, "We'll take it," said I, fiercely, 
and R. meekly repeated, "We'll take 
it." Not only would we not go by 
the Pacific, with its dreadful possibili- 
ties, but we would go by the Atlantic 
in all the luxury possible. Gold and 
precious stones seemed — to me, at 
least — not too great a price to pay for 
the privilege of being transported in 
a state of comfort and security, to our 
home in the northland. 

And now, at last, peace descended 
upon our perturbed spirits. We re- 



159 



GLK^IPSES OF PANAMA 

membered that we were tired -and 
hungry, that there was a dance on at 
the Tivoli that night, at which we ex- 
pected to be present, and that on all 
accounts, therefore, it behooved us to 
hasten. So we sped up the now fa- 
miliar hill to the hotel, and rested a 
few minutes while we talked things 
over. We said how nice it was to be 
by ourselves once more, without that 
horrid old "problem" in the way all 
the time; that although we were los- 
ing the long sea-journey for which 
we yearned and the visit that we had 
counted On with our friends in Cali- 
fornia, yet it was going to be exceed- 
ingly pleasant to go back to New 
York on the "Ancon," where we felt 
at home and were sure of being com- 
fortable; and that, after all, the west- 



160 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

coast trip was a pleasure only post- 
poned, not lost, for after the opening 
of the Canal we could take a big, fine 
ship at New York and go all the way 
round to San Francisco without any 
of the risks which now we were shun- 
ning. The only uncomfortable 
thought we had left was that of a 
most agreeable young couple, the 
L.'s, who had come down with us and 
were now on their way up the west 
coast. Would their deck blow up? 
Or, perchance, would they voluntarily 
fling themselves to the fishes? But it 
is always possible to find fortitude 
for the misfortunes of others; so 
presently, refreshed and quite cheer- 
ful, we got out our festival garments 
and proceeded to array ourselves for 
the evening. After making ourselves 



161 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

as beautiful as possible, we went 
down to dinner and then sat and 
strolled around, in the usual after- 
dinner fashion, waiting for the party 
to begin. 

These Saturday night dances at the 
Tivoli are quite a pleasant institution. 
The tourists like to meet the resident 
Americans and the latter enjoy meet- 
ing new people among the tourists. 
The young people have, in addition, 
the pleasure of the dancing. The Tiv- 
oli, besides, with its big spaces and 
wide porches is an ideal place for such 
a festivity. 

We learned that on this particular 
Saturday night a large crowd was not 
expected on account of a dance at Co- 
lon, which would take some of the 
army and Canal people; but by nine 



162 



GLIJMPSES OF PANAMA 

o'clock the lobby was pretty well 
filled and when the dancing began the 
ball-room floor did not seem any too 
large. It was certainly a good look- 
ing and attractive gathering. The 
women in their pretty gowns and the 
army men in their white and gold uni- 
forms gave brightness to the picture, 
in which a touch of shadow was fur- 
nished by a few men in conventional 
evening dress. Most of the men, 
though, civilian as well as military, 
wore white linen. The evening was 
delightfully cool and dancing did not 
seem inappropriate, even with the 
equator only nine degrees away. 

Almost immediately we were intro- 
duced to Mr. and Mrs. Thatcher, who, 
by virtue of Mr. Thatcher's ofiice as 
Civil Governor of the Canal Zone, 



163 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

were regarded as host and hostess of 
the occasion. We had heard much in 
Panama of the agreeable personalities 
of these two people and, especially, of 
the tact and charm of Mrs. Thatcher 
and her popularity among the Pana- 
manians. Before the evening was 
over my own eyes and ears had as- 
sured me of the truth of all we had 
been told. When the dancing began 
she turned to me, who happened to be 
standing by her, and with her charm- 
ing smile asked me to come out on the 
porch where we could sit down and 
watch the scene through the long 
windows. During our progress to 
the door, she exchanged many greet- 
ings with those we passed and, al- 
ways, her cordial looks and words 
and manner seemed to give the ut- 



165 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

most pleasure. We had heard that 
she had acquired the Spanish lan- 
guage in ten months and I afterwards 
asked Governor Thatcher if this was 
true. "Yes, it is true," he replied, 
"but," he added with a smile, "she 
worked hard." Remembering my 
own struggles with the German 
tongue during the last three or four 
years, I could well believe it. 

Later on we met Col. Green, who 
commands the troops in the Canal 
Zone, a most agreeable, soldierly 
man, and his wife, who, in spite of 
having recently become a grand- 
mother — which no one would think 
possible if she did not tell it — still 
dances like a girl. In the course of 
our talk we learned, to our great 
pleasure, that they were to be our fel- 



166 



GLBIPSES OF PANAMA 

low-voyagers on the "Ancon" to New- 
York, where they were going on a 
holiday trip. 

In my snatches of talk with the 
resident ladies during the evening I 
picked up some information about the 
ups and downs of life in the Zone, and 
especially of the trials to which house- 
keepers are subject on account of the 
humid atmosphere. Everything — 
food, clothes, books, furniture — gets 
mouldy, and all sorts of devices are 
used to fight the dampness. Lights 
are kept burning in closets and cup- 
boards and an electric lamp must 
even be introduced inside of a 
piano in order to keep it in usable 
condition. Aside from this, house- 
keeping seems an easy matter, but 
the exception is so ever-present and 



167 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

far-reaching that only eternal vigi- 
lance keeps it at bay, and the cold 
weather trials of northern housekeep- 
ers must be more than matched. 

We felt very proud of the delight- 
ful Americans whom we had met dur- 
ing the week and who are at the head 
of things in the Zone. Our chief re- 
gret was that we could not meet Col. 
Gorgas, the famous Chief Sanitary 
Officer — the man who cleaned up Ha- 
vana and has now changed the Isth- 
mus from a pest-hole into as healthy 
a spot as there is anywhere. As he 
was away all the time we were there 
we did not even see the great man 
whose sanitary achievements are just 
as wonderful as the work the engi- 
neers are doing, and without whose 
achievements in making the Canal 



168 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

Zone habitable for northern white 
men the engineers could not have ac- 
complished their task. 

In this connection, I am reminded 
of an old lady who came down with us 
from New York. With her husband 
she had been a missionary on the Isth- 
mus for twenty-eight years, and after 
she discovered that I liked to listen to 
her she used to sit by me on deck for a 
while every day and tell me thrilling 
tales of her experiences — how the 
people used to die from malaria and 
smallpox and yellow fever and chol- 
era — how the dead bodies used to be 
picked up in the streets of Colon and 
Panama and carted off to be buried 
in heaps — and how she and her hus- 
band used to take people into their 
home and nurse them through all 



169 



GLIIiIPSES OF PANAMA 

these dreadful diseases. Some special 
cases that she related were very pa- 
thetic and it happened that one young 
man who died in her house belonged 
to a family we knew something about. 
I shall never forget that old lady, who 
had just buried her husband in the 
States and was coming back to finish 
her days in the land where she had 
labored so long. Her tales of the old 
days prepared me to appreciate the 
marvelous results accomplished by 
Col. Gorgas. 

The Saturday night dance at the 
Tivoli had proved exceedingly pleas- 
ant and we retired from the festive 
scene hoping that some time we 
might repeat the happy experience. 
For, by this time, we had fully made 
up our minds that we wanted to come 



170 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

to Panama again some day, to see the 
beautiful country and to meet the 
pleasant people, as well as to go 
through the Canal — and up the west 
coast. 

Our agreeable thoughts, combined 
with the lateness of the hour, enabled 
us to fall asleep without the aid of 
the sound of the rain, which on this 
special evening had most accommoda- 
tingly stayed away. 



171 

12 



IX. 

As the "Ancon" sailed at three 
o'clock on Monday afternoon and, in 
order to catch it, we should have to 
take the ten-twenty train to Colon 
on Monday morning, we were obliged 
to do the most of our packing on Sun- 
day. I found we had picked up quite 
a lot of "junk," as R. called it, and 
almost feared we should have to leave 
some of it behind; but finally every- 
thing was squeezed in somewhere, 
and, finding we had plenty of time, 
we even went down into the city in 
the afternoon and bought a few more 
things. Everything is open on Sun- 



172 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

day, just the same as any other day, 
and it is rather a favorite shopping 
day with tourists. 

After dinner everybody went to the 
band concert on the Cathedral Plaza, 
which is a regular Sunday night af- 
fair. It proved an interesting experi- 
ence. The music was really good 
and, besides, it was our one oppor- 
tunity to see the Panamanians out in 
full force. 

The Plaza, with its luxuriant tropi- 
cal plants, was extremely picturesque, 
and the crowd sitting on the seats or 
moving about in a slow procession 
was no less so. All shades of com- 
plexion were there, from white to 
black, but the Panamanians, no mat- 
ter how dark their skin, have regular 
features and some of them are ex- 



173 




OLD CATHBDRAiL,, PLAZA INDBPBNDENCIA, 
PANAMA CITY. 
Courtesy of Pan A merican Union. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

tremely handsome. Strange, in- 
deed, to our Northern eyes was the 
spectacle of two Panamanian gentle- 
men, evidently friends, strolling 
along together, clad immaculately in 
white linen, with straw hats, canes 
and cigarettes, one of them merely 
Spanish in appearance, the other one 
black as a lump of coal ; and stranger 
still, if the couple happened to be two 
girls in pretty summery finery. 
There is no color line there, in society 
or business, city or country. In fact, 
one of the first presidents of the Re- 
public of Panama was a negro. 

Realizing that this was our last 
evening on the Isthmus, we were re- 
luctant to bring it to a close, and 
stayed until the very end of the mu- 
sic. As we drove smoothly back to 



175 




NEW PANAMA CITY MUNICIPAL BUILDING, 
PLAZA INDEPENDENCIA. 

Courtesy of Pan American Union. 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

the hotel, the charm of our brief stay 
swept over us like a wave and we said 
to each other that we would rather 
have come to Panama than anywhere 
else in the world. And this feeling is 
still with us. 



177 



X. 



Our last morning was a busy one, 
of course. Besides the paying of bills 
and farewell tips, the looking after 
luggage and all the matters that usu- 
ally attend the departure from a ho- 
tel, there was a number of pleasant 
people to say goodby to, to exchange 
cards with and to "hope to meet 
again." Especially did we regret to 
part with one charming lady, who 
had lived and traveled all over the 
world, and was now on her way to 
Peru, South America. She was one 
who we hoped would not prove mere- 
ly "a ship passing in the night." 



178 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

But finally, we were ready. From 
the top of the steps in front of the 
hotel entrance we summoned for the 
last time one of the waiting carriages, 
and in silence made our farewell trip 
down the long hill to the station. 
When the train started we looked out 
at Ancon and the Tivoli and Ancon 
Hill as long as they were in sight, and 
then leaned back and fell to studying 
our fellow-passengers. They were 
numerous and interesting this morn- 
ing and many of them were going up 
on the *'Ancon" with us. The car 
was full of talk, and bits of it that we 
overheard gave clues to many life 
stories. One strong-faced, quiet man 
in front of us told his seat companion 
that he was going up to the States to 
get his mother; the two gay young 



179 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

fellows in front of him were off on 
their four weeks' leave of absence; 
the pale, gray-haired woman across 
the aisle, who was being looked after 
by a nice young man friend, was go- 
ing for her health; and the pretty 
lady who cried all the way across was 
evidently leaving some one very dear. 
At Las Cascades there was a crowd 
of soldiers at the station, and we 
knew instantly that they were there 
to see Col. Green off; so we began to 
watch for his appearance and were 
delighted to see his good-looking, 
jovial face and burly figure coming 
into our car, with Mrs. Green and sev- 
eral young officers. In his gray ci- 
vilian clothes the Colonel did not pre- 
sent so splendid an appearance as at 
the Tivoli dance in his white and gold 



180 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

uniform, but he was good to look at, 
just the same, and so was Mrs. Green, 
who, in a white linen suit, did not 
present so great a transformation. 

At Colon we got some lunch at the 
Commission dining room, took a lit- 
tle last walk and at two o'clock pre- 
sented ourselves at the dock. At the 
sight of the familiar "Ancon," ready 
and waiting, we were filled with a 
great content. We had seven days 
at sea before us, we should travel in 
the greatest comfort, with a delight- 
ful captain and pleasant company, on 
a ship where we felt at home and 
whose deck we felt quite sure would 
not blow up. So we joyously mount- 
ed the gang plank, happy in our 
thoughts both of the past and the 
future, and when an hour later we 



181 



GLIMPSES OF PANAMA 

sailed away, our farewell greeting 
was, "Goodby, dear Isthmian Land! 
We like you very much and hope to 
come again." 



182 



HAY 26 1913 



i^''- 3. i»» 



